Allina News

Dr. Peter Melchert

[Minnesota Public Radio Midday, Feb. 2, 2010] Peter Melchert, MD, a pediatric internist with Abbott Northwestern Hospital and Children’s Hospital and medical director of Children’s Surgery International is in Haiti with the volunteer group providing care for Haitians injured in the earthquake three weeks. He was interviewed on Minnesota Public Radio’s Midday program. Listen to that segment of the program below and see more at minnesota.publicradio.org.

Dr. Peter Melchert on the medical conditions in Haiti

[KSTP-TV, Feb. 3, 2010] A new report from the Minnesota Department of Health says the number of new HIV cases rose 13 percent in 2009, climbing to a 17-year high. HIV is an infection that causes acquired immunodeficiency syndrome, or AIDS.

Doctor Frank Rhame from the Allina Medical Clinic-The Doctors Uptown talked with 5 EYEWITNESS NEWS about the increase. Watch the story below and read more at kstp.com.

[Pioneer Press, Feb. 3, 2010] A group of Twin Cities emergency physicians plans to open a standalone emergency treatment center in Woodbury—hoping to provide faster, cheaper care than the Woodwinds hospital ER a mile away. The group practice has been planning a standalone treatment center for three years, but targeted the east metro suburb after failing to negotiate a contract to staff the Woodwinds ER.

The facility would compete for patients with the nearby emergency department at Woodwinds Health Campus, as well as Allina and HealthPartners urgent care centers. Read the whole story twincities.com.

[MinnPost, Feb. 2, 2010] Every morning a flatbed named despair drives out of the Heartline Ministries compound and into the slums of Port-au-Prince, looking for the injured in need of help. When the truck returns several hours later and slides through the steel rollaway gates that guard the compound, a small medical staff goes to work.

Since last Thursday, some of the injured are being treated by my colleague, Dr. Peter Melchert, an internist and pediatrician working at Abbott Northwestern Hospital and Children’s Hospital in Minneapolis. What Melchert and others are primarily treating is the crush wound, the hallmark injury from what Haitians now refer to simply as “Tuesday.”

Read Dr. Craig Bowron’s story on MinnPost.com.

Dr. Scott Koehler

[KARE11, Feb. 1, 2010] A Northfield doctor will bring his sports medicine expertise to the 2010 Olympics beginning Wednesday in Vancouver. Scott Koehler, M.D., a sports medicine physician at Allina Medical Clinic-Northfield, volunteered to serve at the Athletes’ Village, caring for competitors from all countries.

Dr. Koehler is the team physician for both Carleton and Saint Olaf Colleges in Northfield. He sees similarities in the attitudes of injured athletes, including Olympians. Watch the story below and read more at kare11.com.

Ken Paulus, president and CEO, Allina Health System

[Star Tribune, Feb. 1, 2010] There’s new blood at the top of Minnesota’s best-known hospital and clinic chains—Allina, Mayo and Park Nicollet.

The three CEOs share some similarities: All were picked from within. All succeed visionary leaders. And all will have to steer their organizations through some of the most challenging times in health care—a period of rising bad debt, patients with ever-higher expectations, and reform at the state and federal levels. All three spoke recently with the Star Tribune about the challenges facing their organizations and the outlook for health care in Minnesota.

Read the entire story on startribune.com

[Eden Prairie News, Jan. 29, 2010] More couples are turning to natural family planning as a way to achieve or postpone a pregnancy. Whether for religious, health or environmental reasons, these couples are shying away from contraceptives and having the family they always wanted.

Dr. Frani Knowles, a family medical physician at New Ulm Medical Center, quit prescribing birth control two years ago. Knowles patients choose natural family planning for a variety of reasons. Some can’t take hormonal birth control because of medical issues. Others don’t like the side effects. Some have environmental concerns about the pill, which not only travels through a woman’s body but into waterways.

The effectiveness and convenience attracts many women to hormonal birth control, said Dr. Diana Gillman, an OB/GYN with Allina Medical Clinic and St. Francis Regional Medical Center in Shakopee. Read the whole story at edenprairienews.com.

Dr. Frank Rhame

[MinnPost, Jan. 29, 2010] Earlier this week, the Minnesota Department of Health announced that the number of people with newly diagnosed HIV in 2009 had increased by 13 percent, marking a 17-year high. The increase was driven primarily by an uptick in the number of cases involving males 15 to 24 years old, 88 percent of whom reported male-to-male sex as the primary risk factor.

Dr. Frank Rhame, an HIV specialist with Allina Medical Clinic, says the new numbers didn’t come as a surprise to him. Read the full story at minnpost.com.

Last fall, Dayna Halbert was thrown off her motorcycle and into the truck that t-boned her in an Owatonna intersection. The other driver was going 60 mph, she said. Now she's getting help recovering from therapists at Owatonna Hospital.

[WCCO-TV, Jan. 21, 2010] A Minnesota mother is sharing her story of survival and her one big regret after she was in a terrible motorcycle crash.

Last fall, Dayna Halbert was thrown off her motorcycle and into the truck that t-boned her in an Owatonna intersection. The other driver was going 60 mph, she said. She broke 11 ribs, 23 bones and both of her lungs collapsed. Halbert’s skull was split in half and she also suffered a traumatic brain injury.

She’s working with physical and occupational therapists at Owatonna Hospital to regain her strength and balance. Doctors have operated five times so far and she’s got a few more surgeries and more therapy to go. Watch the story below and read more at wcco.com.

[Shakopee Valley News, Jan. 28, 2010] St. Francis Regional Medical Center in Shakopee has been designated as a Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association (BCBSA) Blue Distinction Center for knee and hip replacement.

Blue Distinction recognizes medical facilities nationally that have demonstrated a commitment to providing quality care, resulting in better outcomes for patients. The program is part of an effort to collaborate with physicians and medical facilities to improve the overall quality and safety of specialty care. Read the whole story at shakopeenews.com.

[Star Tribune, Jan. 29, 2010] If a final health bill passes—and that’s a big if—it’s likely to include a payment formula that would reward efficient, high-quality providers. Leading a coalition of hospitals from the Midwest and Pacific Northwest, Mayo Clinic proposed a radical new payment formula, called a “value index.” Instead of paying the same amount every time a hospital or physician does a procedure—which encourages more procedures—Medicare should pay for value. “Value” would combine patient outcomes, safety, service and total costs over time.

By this measure, health systems in Minnesota would do well. “It’s absolutely the right thing to do,” said Ken Paulus, chief executive of Allina Hospitals and Clinics. Looking at price per procedure, Mayo is expensive compared to local competitors. For example, a colonoscopy costs $1,177 at Mayo and $570 at Allina, according to Minnesota HealthScores, a website that shows what private health plans pay. Read the full story at startribune.com.

Randy Ulseth, Kanabec Hosp. CEO

[The Pine City Pioneer; Kanabec County Times, Jan. 20, 2010] Randy Ulseth, chief executive officer of Kanabec Hospital in Mora, Minnesota, discusses starting negotiations with Allina Medical Clinic which could result in Kanabec Hospital purchasing the Allina Medical Clinic locations in Pine City, Mora and Hinckley.
Read the full story on pinecitymn.com.
Read the full story on moraminn.com.

Jen Amys and Micah Overman of Isanti with their newborn son Wyatt; and other children Gavin, 1 1/2 and Mackenzie, 7. Wyatt was born Jan. 12 at 1:18 a.m. in a van parked at Casey’s General Store on South Main Street in Cambridge.

[Isanti County News, Jan. 27, 2010] Expecting parents Jen Amys and Micah Overman of Isanti, Minnesota, were set to have labor induced at around 6 a.m. on Jan. 12. However, their baby had a different idea in mind. Around midnight, Amys’ water broke. She shouted to Overman, who headed outside to get the van warmed up. On their way to the hospital, they pulled into Casey’s General Store on South Main Street in Cambridge, and the newest member of their family was born at 1:18 a.m.

An ambulance brought them to Cambridge Medical Center, where the volunteers and nurses were very accommodating. “Everytime we turned around they were asking us if there was anything we needed,” Amys said. “Everyone there was so wonderful.” Read the full story on isanticountynews.com.

[Isanti County News, Jan. 27, 2010] The Reach Out and Read Program at the Cambridge Medical Center promotes literacy as a regular part of pediatric care so that every child grows up with books and a love of reading. Local quilters Karin Barfknecht and Penni Hergert donated their talent to make a quilt to raffle off and raise funds for the program. Read the full story on isanticountynews.com.

[Allina Newsroom, Jan. 27, 2010] The City of Apple Valley is now officially a Heart Safe Community. The designation was marked at a celebration on January 20, 2010. The City of Apple Valley is only the second Minnesota community to receive this recognition. The award was presented by Allina Hospitals and Clinics to city officials.

The recognition was in conjunction with the 7th annual Public Access Defibrillation Breakfast sponsored by the Apple Valley Cardiac Emergency Partnership held at the Apple Valley City Hall. Read the full story on allina.com.

Front row, left to right: Nealon Thompson, Apple Valley Fire Chief; Kim Bemenderfer, Allina Heart Safe Communities Coordinator; Mary Hamann-Roland, Apple Valley Mayor; Sgt. JoEllen Rutzen, Apple Valley Police; Patti McCauley, Allina Medical Transportation Education Coordinator. Back row: Brian LaCroix, Allina Medical Transportation President; Susan Long, Allina Medical Transportation Interim ALF Ambulance Manager; Dr. Charles Lick, Allina Medical Transportation Medical Director; Stu Shepard, Apple Valley AED Program Team Member.

Dr. Scott Koehler

[WCCO Radio, Jan. 27, 2010] Dr. Scott Koehler is heading to the Vancouver Winter Olympics in a few days, not as an athlete, but to take care of the athletes.

Dr. Koehler, a sports medicine physician with Allina Medical Clinic-Northfield, has been working with elite world-class athletes for more than ten years, and he will be one of only a handful of non-Canadian doctors selected to tend to Olympic athletes at the Olympic Village in February.

Dr. Koehler was interviewed on WCCO Radio’s noon News Hour and you can listen below.

Allina Medical Clinic’s Dr. Scott Koehler is going to the Olympics

[Allina Newsroom, Jan. 27,2010] Six Allina Hospitals & Clinics hospitals have been designated as Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association (BCBSA) Blue Distinction Centers. Blue Distinction recognizes medical facilities that have demonstrated expertise in delivering quality healthcare in the areas of bariatric surgery, cardiac care, complex and rare cancers, knee and hip replacement, spine surgery and transplants.

The program is part of The Blues® efforts to collaborate with physicians and medical facilities to improve the overall quality and safety of specialty care. Read the full news release at allina.com.

[Pioneer Press, Jan. 24, 2010] There’s a chill in the air for the once-hot retail health clinic industry as growth has stalled following a boom. As the retail clinic business has matured over the past two years, operators that once threatened to undermine the delivery of health care in the U.S. increasingly are finding the need to partner with doctors and hospitals that initially bristled at the competition.

For example, MinuteClinic is reaching out to doctors and hospitals, announcing in November a partnership with the Minneapolis-based Allina Hospitals & Clinics. Read the whole story at pioneerpress.com.

Dr. C. Alan Steed

[Start Tribune, Jan. 24, 2010] Most Minnesotans can probably relate to the winter morning thought, “I don’t want to get up; I just want to stay snuggled in my warm, cozy bed!” But for people with seasonal affective disorder (SAD), getting out of bed — and all the routines and responsibilities that follow — can be a serious challenge in winter months.

SAD is a subcategory under the umbrella of depression, so it has the same symptoms as classic depression, said Alan Steed, a psychologist with Allina Medical Clinic. The difference is that the symptoms occur specifically in the winter months, often starting in fall and ending in spring. Read the full story at startribune.com.

Claudia Wilkens, who stars as Sister Elizabeth Kenny, and a young patient in the production of "Sister Kenny" at the History Theater.

[Star Tribune, Jan. 22, 2010] The testimony of children treated by Sister Kenny has inspired a new play, “Sister Kenny,” at the History Theatre. It tells the story of the pioneering physical therapist who established a clinic in Minneapolis, now called the Sister Kenny Rehabilitation Institute that is part of Allina Hospitals & Clinics, for the treatment of polio and became one of the nation’s most admired people—at the same time that many in the medical establishment—dismissed her as a huckster.

Read the full story online at startribune.com. Also read the MinnPost.com story about “Sister Kenny” online.

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Claudia Wilkens, who stars as Sister Elizabeth Kenny, and a young patient in "Sister Kenny" at the History Theater.

[KSTP-TV, Jan. 20, 2010] Minnesotans are showing just how generous they are when it comes to the Haiti relief effort.

The Minneapolis-based American Refugee Committee has collected supplies and donations from several Minnesota companies.

Allina donated medical supplies. The Mosaic Company, Mortenson Construction and other local businesses have also given money, food and tents. Watch the story below or read more on the KSTP-TV website.

[West Central Tribune, Jan. 21, 2010] It was a major change for chemotherapy patients when the Willmar Regional Cancer Center opened last month.

Instead of going to Affiliated Community Medical Centers, patients are now being treated by their oncologist at the newly integrated center at Rice Memorial Hospital. The change has been “pretty dramatic,” said Dr. J. Michael Ryan, the center’s medical oncologist. “I think they really are impressed with it.”

A new affiliation with the Virginia Piper Cancer Institute at Abbott Northwestern Hospital in Minneapolis is expected to give access to more consultation and an even wider range of treatment protocols, including some that are more advanced and not available except at larger institutions. The cancer center also has a research program enabling eligible patients to participate in selected clinical trials.

Read more on the West Central Tribune’s website.

Dr. Jay Traverse

[Minnesota Public Radio-Midmorning , Jan. 15, 2010] Dr. Jay Traverse, a cardiologist at Allina’s Minneapolis Heart Institute, and two other specialists on stem cells and heart research, talk about new ways to repair hearts and prevent future heart problems in this episode of Minnesota Public Radio’s Midmorning program. Listen to Dr. Traverse below or the whole hour-long program at mpr.org.

Dr. Jay Traverse on stem cells and heart research

Sen. Al Franken

[Minnesota Public Radio-Midday, Jan. 18, 2010] On Minnesota Public Radio’s Midday program, U.S. Senator Al Franken fielded questions on a wide range topics including several on health care. During the program he cited Allina’s Heart of New Ulm program as an example of preventive health care that will improve health and save money. Listen to his answer below or the whole hour-long program at mpr.org.

Sen. Franken on Allina’s Heart of New Ulm project

[River Falls (Wisc.) Journal, Jan. 18, 2010] River Falls Area Hospital Foundation has released a request for proposals from local programs that improve access to health care.

Grant requests from $500-$25,000 will be considered. To be eligible for funding, applicants must provide or plan to provide services that improve access to health services for residents of the communities served by the hospital; demonstrate compatibility with the mission, vision and values of Allina Hospitals & Clinic; and have the demonstrated capacity to carry out the program work funded by the grant and to maintain fiscal accountability. Applications are due on Monday, March 1. Read the whole story at riverfallsjournal.com.